In this post, we\u2019ll touch on the reasons why links are such a crucial part of your site\u2019s success. Then, we\u2019ll introduce and walk you through three solid link optimization techniques. Let\u2019s jump right in! \ud83d\udc07<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n
Why it\u2019s important to optimize your WordPress links<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Chances are, you have at least some links included on every single page of your own site. However, you may never have considered why those links are so important.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
There are two basic types of website links<\/a> \u2013 internal and external. Internal links point to other parts of the same site, and are crucial for providing navigation and helping visitors find what they need. Internal links also improve your site\u2019s Search Engine Optimization (SEO)<\/a>, helping to make it more visible.<\/p>\n\n\n\n External links \u2013 links pointing to other websites \u2013 are just as useful. They provide additional value and resources to your audience, of course. And just like internal links, they also play a key role in your content\u2019s SEO<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n In other words, links matter. Without them<\/a>, visitors won\u2019t understand how to use your site<\/a>, and search engines won\u2019t know how to recommend it. However, just including these two categories of links isn\u2019t enough. In order to maximize their benefits to both you and your audience, you\u2019ll need to put some thought into how<\/em> you use links on your site.<\/p>\n\n\n At this point, you may be wondering exactly what we mean when we talk about \u2018optimizing\u2019 your WordPress links. While there are a lot of strategies to help you accomplish this, we\u2019re going to introduce you to three of the simplest and most effective techniques. Let\u2019s start by putting some thought into what your links actually look like.<\/p>\n\n\n\n As websites have gotten larger and more complex, URLs leading to specific pages have become much longer. It\u2019s not unusual to see a link in your browser that stretches longer than the URL field<\/a> itself.<\/p>\n\n\n\n While there\u2019s nothing inherently wrong with a longer link, messy or hard to understand URLs can lead to a reduction in \u2018link trust\u2019<\/a>. In other words, when they see or hover over a link, people want it to be clear where the URL will take them. Otherwise, they\u2019ll often find it less trustworthy \u2013 and therefore be less likely to click on it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n However, what we would not recommend is using generic link shortener tools, such as Bitly or TinyURL. These tools replace your URL with a short string of random letters and numbers, which is anything but clear. Instead, you\u2019ll want to shorten your links<\/a> in a way that makes them more attractive and<\/em> easier to understand.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Enter the Pretty Links plugin:<\/p>\n\n\nThree ways to implement link optimization on your WordPress site<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
\n
1. Make your links \u2018pretty\u2019 \ud83e\udd8b<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
![\"PrettyLinks](\"https:\/\/ps.w.org\/pretty-link\/assets\/banner-772x250.jpg?rev=3029001\")
\t\t\t